The Runaway
by RogueTempest
Summary: She hated men for many reasons. She had run away and lived in mostly isolation for more than 10 years. She despised men. But she loved the hobbits and was scared of a certain elleth so she may have to put up with two men in order to protect her four beloved halflings on a near suicide adventure. Fun. If she could save at least one hobbit it would all be worth the pain.
1. 1 - The Nazgul

**Disclaimer: I don't own 'Lord of the Rings' or any of its characters, only any of my OCs. This goes for the whole story.**

* * *

The Nazgul were closing in on the hobbit and the elf that attempted to keep him out of their reach. They had a good chance of reaching her before she was able to reach the sanctuary of her home and then they would have the hobbit in their possession but more importantly the Ring.

The black horses would soon overtake the lone white horse. Victory was close. However nobody noticed that there was an extra black horse and therefore an extra black rider. They made their presence apparent once a ring wraith extended his hand towards the injured hobbit. A flash of a sword and a shriek of a wraith was all that was needed for the white horse and elleth to renew their efforts for escape.

The new black rider caused the Nazgul to back up slightly but they were still not about to give up their goal. An elven rider, followed by a single black rider, chased by a group of Nazgul. Whenever a ring wraith closed in on the black rider they would fend them off. It continued like this through forests and across plains with the white horse getting further and further ahead of the group of black horses.

Because she did not have to keep looking over her shoulder, the elf was able to focus on the injured hobbit and eventually made it to the river that would lead them to her people and grant them protection from the evil that still determinedly chased them. When the lone black rider reached the edge of the water they stopped. The hooded figure looked across at the elleth, then the hobbit and back to the elleth. But the elleth was not going to continue on while her saviour was left to the non-existent mercy of the Nazgul.

"Come across! Quickly!"

The elleth issued the invitation that the saviour had been waiting for and as the Nazgul closed in on the rider they rushed through the water to the elleth's side. The Nazgul paused also at the water's edge as the other black rider had done but this time attempted to cross the water without an invitation after exchanging words with the elf.

"If you want him, come claim him,"

The challenge from the elf was enough to draw them into the water and after summoning the power of her people the river itself protected the elf, hobbit and hooded rider from the advancements of the Nazgul. Victory was thought to have been achieved but was short lived as the hobbit suddenly got worse. Both riders dismounted and with the assistance of the hooded rider the elf was able to lay the hobbit on the ground, begging the little one to hang on. While the elleth muttered more things in order to help the hobbit in her arms the hooded rider knelt beside the hobbit. The elleth flinched and paused slightly but as the rider merely rubbed the hobbits head and appeared to be of no threat she continued with her prayer.

The hobbit's will was failing and he was gradually slipping into the darkness brought on by the injury sustained by the Nazgul but he recognised the hooded rider and while he couldn't speak he was able to grab the rider's hand. They squeezed each other's hand and as the hobbit still couldn't seem to say what he wanted to so desperately he merely guided the rider's hand to his neck and to the chain that held a ring. The sound of approaching elves diverted the elleth's attention and caused her to stop her muttering once more. With the elf no longer watching them the rider took the chain off from around the hobbit's neck.

"I will give this back to you when you are better. I will allow no one else to have it,"

The rider muttered this to the hobbit as they placed a kiss on the hobbit's forehead. The hobbit seemed almost relieved by this and was relaxed as elves came to take him the rest of the way to their city for treatment.

The elleth from before looked back at the rider who had not moved to follow after them.

"Come,"

A half shake of the head before a pause.

"Will Frodo be alright?"

The elleth was shocked when the rider spoke and even more so by the feminine voice that drifted from said rider's mouth. After a pause she also replied.

"My father will heal him. I promise,"

A nod.

The rider turned to leave and this caused the elleth to gasp.

"You must come with us quickly!"

The group who had taken the hobbit had gone out of sight by now and so it was only the elleth and rider at the edge of the river. The elleth had looked behind herself to discover this but was not about to leave the injured rider. Her exclamation was because the rider before her had a great gash along her back, horizontally across the bottom of her shoulder blades, and if this was caused by a Nazgul weapon then the rider needed instant attention from the elves. This exclamation also caused the rider to turn back around and from the shadows of the hood a slight smile was visible.

"I will be fine. I am much stronger than I appear,"

With this the rider mounted her black horse and went back the way the pair had just come but just before they were out of sight the elleth put her fear into words.

"Was it a Nazgul?"

However the elleth would not get her answer now but would instead have to wait until they met again and hope that she remembered this question. All the elleth could do was hope her fear was misplaced and that she would see this rider again soon.

* * *

The black rider knew exactly what she wanted and had to do and her determination was not going to be stopped by anyone or anything. She knew it was dangerous to leave the safety of the elves with the ring wraiths still at large especially with her own injuries but she had to make sure they were alright. She wouldn't be able to rest until she knew for sure, possibly not even until they were all guarded by the protection of the elves.

The ones she wanted to protect so fiercely were the other hobbits she knew would have been journeying with Frodo. There were a couple of possible combinations of who would have been with Frodo but either way she was not about to let them be wandering around in such danger. This drove her to ride even faster, not wanting another second to roll by without knowing if they were uninjured or even alive.

It took a long time to find the small group, especially with the forest slowing her progression, and took her until the next day to reach them. When she finally saw three small figures in the distance she was overjoyed. She may have raced to them that instant if it weren't for the larger shadow that led her beloved hobbits through the dense forest of trees. She was still unseen and so dismounted her loyal horse to let him return free to the land, knowing he would stay close and come again if called. Hidden in the shadows she was able to deduce that the hobbits were unafraid of this man but that did little to ease her intrust, something that had built up over many years for the race that man represented; Men. But her need to see the hobbits meant that she did not draw further away but simply waited for them to approach.

"Mr Strider, Sir, do you think Mr Frodo will be alright? Those black riders didn't get him did they? The elves will help him, won't they?"

"There is no need to worry Master Gamgee. That elleth you saw will get your friend to Lord Elrond and then he will be safe and healed,"

"Sam, Merry, Pippin,"

Said hobbits jumped and went for their weapons at the sudden voice while the man drew his blade and aimed it at her, ready for a fight. He would have had to cut through the hobbits to get to her though as they quickly rushed to her side upon discovering her identity.

"Katelynn!"

A gentle laugh came forth as said woman received crushing hugs as she knelt down to her friends' heights. Her hood finally fell away from her face revealing nothing particularly special or memorable about her features. Dark brown hair was in a messy bun and matching coloured eyes were only focused on the three hobbits in her arms and didn't even acknowledge the still raised blade directed at her. Her face wouldn't be described as ugly, especially with a beaming smile currently upon it, but it wasn't definitively beautiful either. It was puzzling to most but more importantly assisted Katelynn in remaining mostly undetectable through the ease it took most to forget her face.

"Who is this woman?"  
Strider demanded to know who this new person was, especially as her sudden appearance had caught him off guard. Her obvious familiarity and trust with the hobbits put him slightly at ease but he was still going to be cautious. It was his nature.

"Oh, Strider. This is Katelynn. She's a good friend of ours and would sometimes travel with Gandalf and come visit us in the Shire,"

"Hey, how long as it been since your last visit?"

Merry and Pippin answered Strider's question and asked one of their own, respectively, which earned responses from both humans present.

"Gandalf never mentioned her, nor have I seen her while traveling with Gandalf myself,"

Strider's suspicion was clear but promptly ignored.

"I know it has been a while Pip but I was coming to visit but then I received a message from Gandalf informing me of the situation, so here I am,"

"Frodo is – was with us as well but-"

"Don't worry Sam. I found Frodo and the elleth and escorted them to Rivendell. The black riders didn't lay a hand on them, I assure you,"

"What about you?"

"Merry. It's me we're talking about,"

"…"

"…"

"…"

The three hobbits released Katelynn and stood silent, staring at her very accusingly.

"Of course I got hurt. Only a little bit. A scratch or two,"

"…"

"…"

"…"

Nothing changed.

"What?"

The hobbits exchanged glances and after a synchronised nod it was Pippin who spoke up.

"Show us,"

"What?"

"You said you only got a few scratches. So show us. Prove it,"

"What? Prove they were only scratches?"

"Yes!"

The continual synchronisation was disheartening the woman as she felt that her dear hobbits were ganging up on her and not believing her. They were correct to not believe her about something like this. Still.

"It is only one scratch,"

"Katelynn,"

"Okay, it may be more than a scratch. But still only one!"

"Katelynn!"

"What? It's nothing. I promise... Look. The sooner we get to Rivendell the sooner I will get healed. Okay? There is nothing we can do here. Come on,"

With this finality Katelynn stood and turned, allowing the hobbits to view the gash on her back but not listening to any of the protests they began to emit, before leading the way through the trees towards Rivendell. Still not acknowledging the present of the forgotten man who, though had sheathed his weapon, still kept his hand on its hilt; ready. The hobbits promptly followed and began questioning their new leader about the experiences she had had in the year that had passed. This particular group of hobbits had always been the more curious and inquisitive amongst the other inhabitants of the Shire. A reason why both Katelynn and Gandalf were especially fond of them.

It was getting late and Katelynn insisted on setting up a small camp while still in the shelter of the forest instead out on the open plain that they were soon approaching. They would be able to reach Rivendell within the next couple of days and she had to once again assure her small companions that her wound would be fine until then. Strider may have started to protest about some of things Katelynn spoke but, as he was distinctly ignored, his opinion was not taken into account by the stubborn and rude woman.

They ate and the hobbits settled in for the night after a quick story from their friend about some of her more exciting travels of recent.

"I'll take the first watch,"

Strider did his best to gain a few words from the newly appeared woman but as no reply came he decided to keep watch all night. He was skilled enough to go a couple of nights without sleep, the simple rest would be plenty. Apparently so was the woman as not once through the night did her eyes droop or her muscles relax. The beginning of the next day brought a quick breakfast and a snack for the road for the hobbits. Katelynn was determined to cross the plain that day as to hopefully not be caught unprepared by the black riders if they still lurked around and the elleth had not been able to disperse them as far as they all hoped.

Rivendell was still a couple of days away and while this journey had only taken Katelynn a single day it would take longer for the group without the speed of horses and the same sense of urgency. However the woman still held a certain amount of urgency for this trip as she desperately wanted to know if Frodo was alright and she couldn't stand the man's presence a moment longer than necessary. She loved the hobbits dearly and if it wasn't for their innocence and kind hearts she would have already slain the man to rid herself of his foul existence but for the hobbit's sake she resisted the instinct and merely stayed as far away from him as possible. Her hate for men was known by the handful of beings that knew her and so if the hobbits asked to spare him she would for the time being.

"Katelynn! Where have you been for the past year?"

"Yeah! You said you would come for the birthday party!"

"Merry, Pip, hush. I assure you I didn't mean to miss it. I got a bit tangled up in something I was doing for Gandalf and lost track of time. When I did finally finish I started on my way back but received a letter from Gandalf telling me what was happening with your little group. So, I made for Rivendell and came across Frodo and the elleth and you know the rest,"

"What were you doing for Gandalf?"

"Sam! When did you get so inquisitive about these things?"

Katelynn's remark caused said hobbit to blush profusely to the laughter of all but the still cautious Strider.

"I'm only playing Sam. I went to visit some dwarves; old friends of Gandalf and myself. And they have partied like hobbits so I couldn't leave for quite a while. I would have been rude. And they may have stolen my cloak so I couldn't sneak out,"

The story was getting more and more laughter as it went on and the mood was lifted dramatically; possibly the best it had been since the journey from the Shire began. The only one who had lost cheer, if it was possible, was Strider. The sudden appearance of the woman had put him on edge from the very beginning with no sign that it was going to ease. He didn't know why but he was going to trust his instincts.

They crossed the plains in good time and would be able to journey through the forest a distance before stopping for another night of attempted rest. There was still no sign of any Wraiths and this news relieved everybody. The hobbits continued to talk with their spirits raised and Katelynn would answer their questions as best she could without disheartening them and destroying the mood.

The sun was beginning to set now after travelling about an hour on the final leg of their journey to Rivendell. Strider had become more and more tense as the time he spent with the woman increased. Whenever he spoke she became quiet. Whenever he asked a question she didn't acknowledge it, let alone answer it. If it wasn't for the stress and worry of the Wraiths then he would have been fine but he was becoming exceedingly frustrated at her behaviour. All he wanted was answers.

"Katelynnnnnnnnnnn,"

"Yes Pippin?"

"Can we stopppp?"

"Soon. A saw a good camping spot on my way through last time. It isn't too far little one. Don't worry,"

"Katelynnnnnn!"

"Just think of it as a step closer to Rivendell and Frodo. Think of the food if you have to,"

This conversation went on in a similar fashion with Merry joining in and Sam speaking up now and then. The four were so preoccupied with each other that they hadn't noticed Strider quickly advancing on Katelynn. He wanted answers. He reached a hand out to grab her shoulder but never reached it. In a blink of an eye she had spun around and grabbed his extended arm by the wrist. Her grip was deathly but not nearly as much as her stare.

"Never touch me,"

Her grip tightened further and her gaze didn't waver.

"Katelynn!"

"Don't!"

"He didn't mean it!"  
The hobbits quickly started yelling, hoping to stop whatever she may do to him. The panicked expressions of the hobbits was enough to stop her. She loosened her hold on Strider's arm, turned to the hobbits and smiled.

"What do I have to keep telling you lot. Don't worry,"

The hobbits looked relieved and turned to continue on their way. Katelynn still held onto Strider's arm and waited for the hobbits to be out of hearing range before finally turning to the offending man.

"Touch me again and I'll kill you. Hobbits or not. Men are just disgusting and vile,"

The threat of gently whispered in Strider's ear before she finally let go and walked forward as if nothing had happened. As she passed them she gave the hobbits affectionate head rubs to cause even greater smiles on their faces and to reinforce that she wasn't going to kill Strider yet.

However a few steps later she tripped. This caused the three hobbits to rush to her side and for Strider to look on in more curiosity.

"Katelynn!"

"I'm fine. I just tripped,"

"You never 'just trip',"

"Oh, shush Merry,"

"Well, it's true!"

"If the wound was from the blade of a Nazgul then it will have the same effect as it did on Frodo,"

Strider had already guessed that his suspicions were true but felt that the hobbits deserved to know the truth, that their friend was in immense pain and danger. She gave him attention this time but it was similar to last time, a few seconds earlier, it was a stare that wished he would die and have eternal pain for this comment and of he spoke any further.

"I'm fine,"

"You have been growing weaker over the short time you have been with us,"

"I'm not weak! … I'm fine,"

These last two words were defiant and left no room for argument. No matter how many times she stumbled throughout the day she wouldn't admit the pain her injury was causing her or allow anyone to help her, not even the hobbits and certainly not Strider. The pain got more intense as the night drew closer and Pippin made a comment or two that her hands were getting colder each time she went to rub his head. When the night did come it was quiet for the group with neither Katelynn nor Strider going to sleep and instead letting the hobbits rest while keeping an eye on each other and the surrounding trees.

The next day they reached Rivendell. With Katelynn barely able to stand but still refusing help. If the darkness from the wound wasn't making her weak then it was the blood loss from her still mostly open slash.

The looks on the hobbits' faces were ones of pure joy and excitement upon seeing more elves. When the group of five got to the border of Rivendell there were a couple of elves waiting for them, near where Katelynn left elleth and Frodo a few days before. The hobbits raced across the river but Katelynn stumbled again as she made her way out of the water. This time she put up a minimal struggle as the two elves came to her side to stop her from kissing the ground.

"Our sister told us about you,"

"You need to get that cut looked at,"

With this they proceeded to drag Katelynn until she stopped struggling and let of them help her to 'walk' while she told the other to look after the hobbits. Basically by the time they made it to the city of Rivendell Katelynn was being carried to her extreme annoyance. Luckily for the ellon that was currently carrying her, she didn't have the strength to try and fight him off at this point but she made a mental note to remember to punch him later for the humiliation. While she was thinking of how good it was going to be to punch him in the face the ellon began to speak and broke her violent fantasy.

"We need to take you to my father. That wound needs to be looked at immediately and-"

"Not until I see Frodo,"

The ellon stopped at her sudden stubbornness which caused Sam to walk into his legs, which had no effect on the male elf.

"He hasn't woken up yet,"

"Don't care,"

"But-"

"No. I won't let anyone even look at my injury until I see Frodo. So please, take the hobbits and myself to Frodo,"

"You are as stubborn as always Katelynn,"

"Hello Gandalf,"

Her tone went from defiant to slightly irritated once the old wizard spoke. She rolled her eyes and couldn't be bothered to look at the wizard. She also became silent.

"Silence. My true magic it would seem. Not much can cause you to hide your opinion and thoughts. Elrohir you may want to take her to see Frodo before she passes out. Come hobbits. Elladan. Aragorn. Follow me,"

With this the grey wizard walked past the group and seemed to lead the way towards the unconscious hobbit.

"Oh and don't worry Katelynn, Frodo is fine,"

"I figured that out already. If something had happened everyone would be on edge and would have undoubtedly told us by now,"

"There's the attitude,"

"Oh shush Gandalf,"

The group then made their way through the buildings, hallways and walkways of Rivendell with the hobbits gawking at the number of elves and how different everything was to the Shire. Luckily all of the questions they had were directed at Gandalf so Katelynn just smiled and rested, waiting to see one of her beloved hobbits.

Then they reached the room where Frodo was resting.

As soon as Katelynn saw the rise and fall of Frodo's chest she passed out.

* * *

It was the next day when Katelynn woke up. The first thing she thought of was the pain across the back of her shoulders and then she noticed how it hurt less than it did before. A few seconds later she remembered the hobbits and in trying to get out of bed promptly fell on her face. She took this opportunity to study the room she was in and more importantly what she was currently wearing. Now the room she was in was nice and bright with lots of light coming through the window to make it easy to see the various pieces of simple furniture dotting the space. More importantly she was wearing a dress. Katelynn hated dresses. They were completely impractical and impossible to fight in. She hated them. The feeling of the loose fabric around her arms and legs was disconcerting. Even worse it was light blue. Light colours were annoying and again impractical. They got dirty so easily. Basically this day wasn't off to a good start.

At the moment she was lying on her side as her back still hurt and she didn't want to be staring at the ground. Once her head stopped hurting and her arms started moving she would attempt to get to her feet once again and then go on a hunt for the hobbits and maybe even the wizard.


	2. 2 - Reunion With Hobbits

The time finally came when the woman was once again able to move her body to her will and vacate the position she had held for the past few minutes on the floor. Katelynn was still dissatisfied by her current situation. If she could find another change of clothes while she sort out the hobbits then her day may just get better. Once firmly on her feet, and by her standards that meant barely staying on her feet and swaying but not needing any support to stay upright, Katelynn then ventured through the passages of Rivendell. The woman was out of place in this elvish dwelling by not only her race but more noticeably her demeanour. The elves that Katelynn encountered were in no hurry and had no problems while the injured woman was clearly neither.

With the curious and sometimes borderline disgusted looks she was receiving from the inhabitants of this city Katelynn continued to make her way through passages, taking numerous corners and turns and maybe even completing circles. She didn't mind. Besides the unwanted attention and glances she didn't mind wandering around and taking in the new scenery, it was truly beautiful and peaceful. This helped to calm her heart of the desperation she held to find the hobbits. Once she knew they were alright, more importantly alive and smiling, she would allow herself a tiny bit of rest before possibly escorting them back to the Shire. She doubted hobbits had any business further than Rivendell. She was surprised they even had business enough to come as far as they had, Bilbo was the only hobbit she could think of who had ever ventured past Bree let alone come to Rivendell.

Speaking of Bilbo.

"Katelynn! My dear!"

Said girl was walking down a passageway that looked much the same as the multitude of others she had walked through the past couple of hours. It had been a tedious and frankly painful time since she had woken and left the room she began in. The welcome sight of Bilbo dispelled much of this.

"Bilbo!"

The pain was indeed forgotten for a short time, just enough for Katelynn to run over to her dear friend and embrace him with her smile never wavering.

"Katelynn! Oh, how long has it been?"

"Too long!"  
They continued to embrace for a little while longer as they laughed happily at being in each other's company once again. Once they were released from the comforting hold they were then able to analyse the face of the other and begin a very long conversation of how things had been since their last meeting, which felt like an eternity ago.

"When was the last time I saw you? I know that scar near your neck was not there last time. I'm I correct in saying there is an interesting story, and dare I say adventure, behind that mark? I bet it's the reason you haven't been around in a while,"

Katelynn's sudden expression was best described as amusement crossed with a little bit of mischievousness.

"Maybe,"

She wasn't going to give up her story that easily. She planned on telling all of the hobbits at once anyway otherwise she would have to repeat it numerous times and answer the same questions millions of times more. Bilbo and she would have plenty of other things to talk about anyway.

Katelynn became acquainted with Gandalf after Bilbo left the Shire and so she only had brief contact with the elderly hobbit when she occasionally visited Rivendell with Gandalf. The reason why few of the elves here knew about her was because she still tended to remain stealthy and preferred to be a ghost rather than interact with others. The only other one here who knew about her was Elrond but she had a feeling she would have to introduce herself to more people later on. But that was later. Now she could spend time with Bilbo. She truly loved his stories. Frodo told her a couple when she would visit the Shire with Gandalf, and even the couple of times she went by herself for some relaxation and rare peace, but they were never the same as when told by Bilbo himself. Either way hobbits were amazing company.

"Okay, okay, if you don't want to tell me now then don't but I expect the full story and every detail later!"

"Fair enough,"

"Anyway. Another question. What are you doing here dear?"

"Gandalf,"

Complete deadpan. This was Katelynn as she gave her answer. Bilbo knew better than anyone else how much trouble the old wizard could cause to those he encountered. He knew extremely well. Someone usually didn't cross paths with an angry dragon by accident but Gandalf still insists that he only gave the poor hobbit a nudge out the door.

Well it was all in the past now.

After Bilbo's little chuckle at the mention of Gandalf Katelynn proceeded to inform her hobbit companion of the details of her journey and the reason for being in the elven city of Rivendell. It turned out that Bilbo knew a thing or two about what was going on. Maybe even a bit more. Whenever Katelynn made a subtle, or not so subtle, suggestion as to wondering what the reason could be for Frodo, Sam, Merry and Pippin coming all this way in the first place Bilbo would do a nervous laugh and advert his gaze from the watchful woman. She didn't know what Bilbo and Gandalf were up to but whatever it was it was dangerous and putting the four other hobbits at terrible risk.

It was strange that Katelynn didn't know what was going on. Gandalf usually had the curtesy to at least inform her of the trouble he had planned before he pushed her into it but now she seemed to be the only one without a single clue as to what was going on. Saying that, she couldn't be entirely angry at the wizard. He was only able to send her a brief message telling her about a danger to the hobbits and to go to Bree as soon as possible to help them if they needed it. He may have not had any time to write more. The most important thing was that she was able to get to the hobbits in time to help them, they most certainly needed all they could get with the Nazgul after them.

They brought the conversation to a more pleasant topic with Bilbo enlightening Katelynn as to the things he had been doing since her last visit, he even recited a few of the songs he had come up with in this time. It was all going well and a surprising amount of time had gone by but it was all interrupted by a certain ellon who was not happy with what was going on.

"Katelynn,"

It was a stern, clear voice that was devoid of most emotion and came from the entrance that Katelynn had somehow found during her stumbling travels around Rivendell. It could only be one person. She didn't even have to turn around.

"Good morning Elrond,"

"It's the afternoon,"

"Good afternoon Elrond,"

"Katelynn,"

"What? Didn't you want a proper greeting?"

"Then it would be _Lord Elrond_ ,"

"Salutations elf,"

"Katelynn,"

"What? Is there anything wrong with it?"

"How are your wounds?"

This time Katelynn did look around and discovered that Elrond had continued approaching during their strange conversation to now be standing directly behind the poor girl.

"Uh oh,"

Before she could escape the ellon had a firm grip on the back of her borrowed dress and may have purposefully grabbed a bit of her hair as well to ensure she wouldn't get away.

"How are your wounds?"

"I'm fine,"  
"How are your wounds?"

"Only hurt when you touch them,"

"How are your wounds?"

"Let go of me,"

"How are your wounds?"

"Please?"

Bilbo watched on in confusion and fascination at the weird relationship that seemed to connect these two. It took a certain type of person to put up with the stubbornness of Katelynn let alone be able to deal with it. From what Bilbo knew of the girl she should be kicking and screaming to break free so that she didn't have to deal with someone trying to look after her. She didn't like to be considered weak. She would rather die than have someone tend to her wounds, she believed she was more than capable of looking after herself and tending to her own injuries.

Long story short Bilbo had to convince Katelynn to go with Elrond quietly. Her smart attitude and Elrond's own stubbornness meant that a fight was closely approaching if one of them didn't give in shortly.

"Katelynn, I need to check on your wounds. They were made by a Morgul blade,"

"I'm fine!"

"Katelynn!"

"I've had the wound on my leg for a couple of weeks. If it was going to kill me it would have done so already,"

"It won't kill you it will turn you into a servant of the Nazgul,"

"I'll never be anyone's servant! Never!"

By this point Elrond was most definitely pulling her hair and was almost pulling her backwards off the bench she was sharing with Bilbo, who still looked on the encounter in wonder and fascination. He had never seen anyone talk to Elrond like this, let alone elicit such a reaction from the wise elf lord.

"Katelynn,"

The old hobbit had almost been forgotten by the woman and ellon as they fought each other's stubbornness. Now he was their focus. Once he spoke up they did stop fighting but now he just had to ensure they wouldn't start again and, more importantly, that he wouldn't make the situation any worse.

"Katelynn, dear. Let's go for a walk with Elrond. He can look at your back a little as we walk, just to see if it does need a bit more tending to, and I can tell you a couple more stories. Would you like me to tell you the one about the incident in Mirkwood the dwarves and I had? That one always makes you laugh, doesn't it?"

"Okay. But only because you asked,"

The situation was defused for now. If Elrond wanted to take a closer look at her back then there could be another problem there that Bilbo would not be able to so easily solve. For now there was a little peace between the two. That was what mattered.

Bilbo did indeed give another recount of his adventure through Mirkwood, focusing on the antics of the dwarves while under the hallucination of the forest. There was also the amusing encounter with the elves of Mirkwood, as neither the elves or dwarves liked the other party and the banter was very entertaining to an observer. While Bilbo talked and Katelynn listened Elrond did inspect the part of her back he could see without removing some of her dress. The dress she was wearing had a low back so that Elrond could get to her wounds easily without disturbing the woman too much.

Just as Bilbo got to the part of his tale about how himself and the 13 dwarves were able to escape from the elven dwelling in Mirkwood he was interrupted.

"Katelynn!"

It used to be that her name was rarely known and normally only with Gandalf or in the Shire was it spoken often, now it was ringing off every wall of Rivendell.

It was two particular hobbits that had called out her name this time. The woman had almost forgotten what her true purpose for venturing outside her room was. This call of her name however was a late warning as she was tackled to the ground almost as soon as she had registered her own name.

"Merry! Pip!"

"Katelynn! We were getting worried. You slept for ages,"

"Yeah! How is your back? Are you alright? Did we just hurt you? I'm sorry!"

"Pippin! … I'm fine,"

Elrond had recovered from the sudden appearance of the energetic hobbits and at this last comment by Katelynn gave her a disapproving stare. It wasn't a lie if she believed she was telling the truth. Katelynn had to be quick though to ensure Elrond didn't make his point verbally in front of the concerned hobbits, all three of them.

"More importantly, how are the two of you? And what about the others?"

"Oh, we're good. Sam is keeping an eye on Frodo, he still hasn't woken up but we were told he's good too, and Gandalf's with him as well,"

"Yeah, as Merry said, everyone's fine, basically, yeah,"

"Thank you for clearing that up Pip,"

Pippin was sweet when he tried to help like this. Katelynn couldn't resist rubbing his curly hair. He was truly a sweet hobbit, this trait amongst hobbits was one of the reasons she loved them so much. They weren't greedy or stubborn like dwarves, self-centred or disgusting like men or distant or mighty like elves. Hobbits were simple and sweet. They cared without expecting anything in return. It wasn't that she didn't like the company of dwarves or elves, even though she still detested the thought of being in the mere presence of men, it was just that it was always peaceful and calming to be around the hobbits. Hobbits just didn't seem to know about violence and darkness and pain.

"Let's go see if we can find the others. How does that sound?"

There was a chorus of agreement from the three hobbits, as Bilbo had finally spoken up after the appearance of the two younger hobbits. Then Elrond spoke up. Very displeased at Katelynn's attempt at avoiding him.

"We need to look at your back again first,"

"No!"

"You said your back was fine!"

"It is!"

Katelynn didn't mean to yell at Merry but Elrond was testing her patience. If she could stand she was fine! That was how it worked in her world and she had survived thus far! No stuck up elf was going to change that! No matter how nice he may be at times! And how understanding and accommodating he was…!

That wasn't the point!

The rant in her head was getting just a little bit off topic.

When Merry and Pippin had stumbled across the multi race trio they were walking through a passageway that opened up into another small courtyard, like the one that Katelynn had originally found Bilbo in. The now larger group was sheltered from the light breeze while they mingled in the hallway. The hobbit duo must have been in the courtyard. Knowing those two they would have done quite a bit of exploring since coming to the city of Rivendell.

"Elrond,"

Katelynn turned to full face the elf lord who had been constantly pestering her since he discovered her talking to Bilbo earlier. Since waking and finding herself in a dress there was only one thing that Katelynn was grateful for and that was the fact that her hair was still tied up. It had been retied when she was unconscious but being up meant there was one less inconvenience she had to deal with right now. It also meant that when she turned to fully face Elrond it didn't go everywhere from the sudden head movement.

She was going to have to get through to Elrond if she didn't want to continue fighting with him for the rest of the day or even the week depending on how long the hobbits stayed. A deal or a compromise wasn't out of the question, especially if Katelynn came out as being the better person.

Her response from the ellon was merely a stare but she wasn't about to let his indifference and borderline rudeness stop her from attempting to be responsible for once in her life.

"Can I have my clothes back if I let you check my back quickly?"  
"Sure, you can have them back in a couple of once I'm sure your back is completely healed,"

"That's not the deal! I want to get out of this hideous, annoying dress! Now!"

So much for mature.

Elrond was not impressed either.

"Why do I have to wait so long anyway?"

"Because I know you won't leave without your clothes and you may runaway otherwise before your wounds are completely healed,"

"No I won't,"

"Really?"

Damn. Katelynn had to think about this for a bit but once she got her idea her expression was victorious. With one hand on her waist and the other pointing her index finger at Elrond she then proceeded to give him a valid reason why he should trust her.

"I'm not leaving until the hobbits leave so I can escort them back to the Shire safely and if my wounds still need tending to then so will Frodo's, meaning they won't be leaving for a few more days at least. There,"

"You seem quite proud of that,"

It was bad enough that Elrond didn't trust Katelynn's word but now he was just making fun of her. Before the woman could protest and give voice to her thoughts using unsavoury words the elf continued with his own point in the argument.

"Even if you do remain here it doesn't mean that you will allow me to inspect your back again before you do eventually leave,"

"True,"

Katelynn did have to give him that one. It didn't mean she was about to give up though. Someone else had a different opinion.

"Katelynn. I don't know how many times I have to tell you not to irritate Lord Elrond. Poor ellon usually doesn't have to deal with your calibre of stubbornness. Most lucky souls don't,"

Gandalf the Grey certainly had a way with words. Whether Katelynn was offended or not she knew she was never going to win against him, and she valued him too much as a friend to do anything about it anyway.

"Good morning Gandalf,"

"It's the afternoon,"

"I know,"

The woman had yet to turn around to take in the sight of the wizard but she knew he would have been smiling, much like what she was now at both of their strange and childish antics. With this Katelynn turned to look at the wizard and took the few steps necessary to become close enough to embrace her old and dear friend and often travelling companion.

"It's good to know you're alright,"

"I know my dear. I know,"

It was an almost silent exchange of words with the elf being polite enough to give them some privacy and ignore their brief conversation. Then the pair withdrew from the embrace and Gandalf addressed his next words to everyone present.

"Shall we go pay a visit to the young Mr Baggins? He may still be unconscious but I think Mr Gamgee wouldn't say no to a bit of awake company,"

The hobbits were the only ones to give verbal confirmation and Lord Elrond proceeded to walk forward, intending to lead the way to the room Frodo was currently recovering in. Katelynn had other ideas.

"I want my clothes back!"

"No,"

Gandalf didn't hesitate or even blink but turned to follow after Elrond with the wary and confused hobbits following while throwing glances over their shoulders at the infuriated woman.

"But Gandalf!"

"No buts. We'll discuss it later,"

"I don't want to discuss it later,"

"What was that dear?"  
"Nothing!"

Katelynn had intended to mumble that retort but obviously didn't succeed. Her attitude was getting out of control and all she needed was someone one to realise that it would get infinitely better if she was allowed to have her clothes back. Pants! Dark colours! Why did she have to wear this stupid dress?! At least the hobbits and ellon had sense not to make any comments about it. They knew it would only set her off and make her dangerous. Not that she couldn't be dangerous anyway. There was just no sense in having her try to kill everyone if it could be avoided. Especially since Rivendell was so peaceful. At the moment.

* * *

"Katelynn! How are you feeling?"

"I'm feeling a lot better now. Thanks Sam. But I think we should keep it quiet for now. Frodo's still sleeping,"

This last bit was whispered and caused a certain Samwise Gamgee to suddenly slam both of his hands over his mouth to ensure silence. Everyone giggled or chuckled at this action but, either consciously or subconsciously, kept it to a relatively low volume. After this they sat on chairs out on the adjoining balcony to Frodo's room. They talked a bit about the adventures of the hobbits and then about random memories and joyous moments past.

It was nice. Truly peaceful. Most that were present in the small group forgot their worries.

"Hey Sam. How do you feel after finally meeting elves?"

Said hobbit blushed and started stammering incoherently as the elf lord was still present in the group. Merry seemed quite pleased with himself at causing such a reaction and received a subtle congratulation from Pippin. Elrond didn't help much with his silence that seemed to put poor Sam even more on edge. Gandalf and Katelynn decided not to assist the hobbit either with silence and snickering as their weapons respectively.

"Well- Um… It's a little different- but… it's better than I imagined. But-but- Katelynn looks a bit like them- I didn't realise they would look so similar- I mean… I don't know… I'll stop now…"

The others all laughed to differing degrees in their own ways. Except for Katelynn. She knew Sam meant well but she took a bit of insult to it.

"How exactly do I look like an elf?"

There was no saving Sam now and he most likely realised this as the stammering became a severe form of stuttering and his words were barely decipherable. Which may have been a good thing.

"W-w-w-wel-l-ll y-you lo-lo-look pr-pre- … th-the dr-dre-dress… …"

"What about the dress?!"

Katelynn suddenly found herself on her feet glaring down at the frozen and frightened hobbit. She never wanted to scare or yell at the poor, kind and dear hobbits but there were some subjects that when breached there was no retreating from the unleashed, uncontrollable and unreasonable demon.

"Calm down child. Remember Frodo is still resting. Keep your voice down,"  
"No!"

"Dea-"

"No! No! No!"

"Child!"  
Gandalf stood to his full height. He was not going to spread shadows in Rivendell but that did little to decrease his intimidation factor.

However.

Katelynn stopped being intimidated years ago.

"No! All I want are my own clothes and for everyone to stop fussing! It's not that much to ask! Why are you like this anyway?!"  
"Katelynn,"

The woman turned quickly away from the wizard to face the elf who had spoken. This movement caused the dress she was being forced to wear flow around her feet, enraging her even more. Before she could utter another loud and snappy remark Elrond continued with what he intended to say to the girl.

"Arwen should have returned your clothes to your room by now,"

This took Katelynn off guard as well as made her voice a lot quieter with uncertainty.

"What?"

Elrond only smiled before slowly getting to his feet and placing a hand gentle on her shoulder.

"The elleth you assisted along with Frodo is my daughter, Arwen. As thanks she decided to fix your clothes, they had a few tears and holes in them from your travels,"

"Oh…"

"It also wouldn't hurt for you to wear a dress and act like a lady every once in a while,"

"No!"

The prospect of being back in her own clothes and the security that came along with the familiarity put her in a much better mood. To everyone else's relief.

A deal was then struck between the woman and elf for Elrond to escort Katelynn back to her temporary accommodation if she didn't make too much of a fuss and agreed to patiently wait for the discussion to finish. When sundown neared Katelynn would be able to change her attire before joining everyone else for the afternoon meal. Where she was also expected to behave.

Hopefully Frodo would wake up soon.


	3. 3 - Dinner

Dinner was an interesting affair to say the least.

Katelynn waited patiently as the deal stated and made very little smart and sassy comments throughout the rest of the conversation. The discussion itself wasn't terribly interesting and with no response as of yet from Frodo the time for Katelynn to get changed and for everyone to meet once again for the evening meal. Even when being escorted back to her room the woman and Elrond didn't bicker or engage in their seemingly usual banter. Instead Katelynn enjoyed the light of the setting sun as it streamed through and bounced off the usually white stone of the elven passageways and buildings. It was quite beautiful. If only the rest of the world was like this.

The stone became shades of orange and yellow with the occasional hint of red interlaced with these colours. The outline of trees were black shadows on the wall but the shadows held no true darkness or fear. They were still beautiful. Everything in this place was peaceful. If something outside this walls would have worried your heart it would no longer have the same effect once in the protection of Rivendell. The place was almost untouchable. Almost. Evil was indeed growing in the rest of the world and there was no telling how far it would eventually reach.

When Katelynn had ditched the despicable light blue and had adorned her comforting, protective safety of her black attire the woman and ellon pair made their way to the dining area.

"Merry! Pippin! Sam!"

With her new found freedom from being able to wear pants again Katelynn was willing and able to tackle the trio of hobbits in a massive hug upon seeing them again. Even though it had only been a few minutes since they last saw each other. Katelynn really did enjoy the company of the hobbits. And everyone was going to know about it.

"Oi! Get off would you!"

"Katelynn!"

There were shouts from the first two hobbits mentioned but the laughter erupting from their mouths made it difficult to take their demands or anger seriously. Sam chuckled a little but mostly just went with the flow. Katelynn was always visiting Bag End to see Frodo and so would often run into Sam. This meant that this wise hobbit was use to the antics of the strange woman. He understood it as her customary greeting towards hobbits. It was a lot easier to think of it this way anyway.

"You seem a lot happier,"

"I'm wearing pants! Finally!"

"You haven't changed a bit,"

"You're never going to change are you?"

"Nope!"

There was more laughter but it was from four of them now instead of only three halflings. Five actually as a deep voice joined them in their merriment.

"It seems that everyone is enjoying themselves,"

"Correct as always Gandalf. Once Frodo wakes up the gang will be back together again!"

"And then you lot will cause mayhem in the peaceful city of Rivendell?"

"Gandalf I am offended!"

"Merry's right! We would never do anything like that. Well there might have been the incident at the farm and the mill and the lake and-"

"Yes Pippin I think he gets the picture,"

"Exactly!"

"I don't think that's what he meant Pippin,"  
"What do you mean Katelynn?"

"How about we just drop the subject and enjoy some food. If there is one thing everyone knows about hobbits it is their ability to eat a lot more than what their size would imply and to always have an insatiable appetite. Am I right?"

"Yeah!"

All of the hobbits agreed with this observation and proceeded to recreate this image as platters of food were laid before them by some of the elves of Rivendell. Needless to say the food was devoured almost instantly. It was always difficult to keep a hobbits hunger satisfied yet alone for a long period of time. Katelynn assumed that they had eaten in this fashion ever since coming to the elven city, not just in this one circumstance. That was just how hobbits were.

The meal continued in this fashion when it came to the hobbits but the others present at the table changed with every different situation. As expected Katelynn made a not so subtle point to ignore the very existence of the man once he showed up at the table but until then the woman spent her time mainly conversing with Gandalf but also had the brief exchange of words with the elleth who had escorted Frodo the last distance to Rivendell, Arwen. Then there were also her brothers, Elladan and Erohir, who seemed a bit unsure of Katelynn because of her initial behaviour upon their first meeting. Katelynn really didn't like being carried and she made that very clear both then and now. It wasn't anything personal towards them but extremely personal for her; she didn't like to be perceived as weak.

With Arwen the exchange was predominately pleasant. There was a bit of awkwardness when it came to who should be thanking who and it eventually had to be agreed upon that everything between them had been settled. Arwen was overwhelmingly grateful for the assistance Katelynn gave to her with concerns to the chase involving the Nazgul but the woman insisted that she owed the elleth for risking her life in the first place to help her dear hobbit. After this it came to the point of how Katelynn felt it was unnecessary for Arwen to go through the trouble of fixing up her clothes. Eventually it got a stage where Elrond and Gandalf had to intervene in order to resolve the polite argument that was taking place between the two females over who was being too nice and seemingly petty things like that.

"This stitch work is excellent. I haven't seen anything like it,"

"Yes but from what I hear you don't interact much with others either,"

"True but this is still very good. Much better than myself. Would it be too much to ask for a lesson or two before I leave? Some people may not think so but this is an extremely useful skill when travelling,"

"Of course. So long as you don't mind a spar or two. You were very impressive yourself when facing off against the Nazgul. I wouldn't mind improving a little and giving my brothers a bit of a surprise,"

"Certainly. It's a deal then,"

"Indeed,"

Katelynn could add a couple of more elven names to the small list of those she was willing to interact with. Outside of Gandalf and the hobbits in and around the Shire Katelynn didn't talk to many others. There were a couple of dwarven associates of the old wizard that the woman had met once or twice on her travels with him but overall she preferred the seclusion of the woods to the company of other beings.

"Dear. Does this mean that you will start making dresses and possibly even wearing them?"

"Oh shush,"

Katelynn couldn't help but smile as the hobbits stopped their eating, a rare occurrence, to laugh at the idea of this woman willingly having anything to do with the long, flowing feminine garment. Gandalf had meant the comment in jest and Katelynn was in a mood to tolerate it at her own expense. The wizard would have figured out her intentions for learning to sew it a better standard. The woman would often get slight injuries and this amount of shallow scratches would eventually lead to her clothes almost fall apart in some places. Before Katelynn would have to go into a town and interact with people in order to get new clothing but if she was able to better repair these rips and tears then she could prolong this torture as well as lessen the number of occurrences as well. It was a major win for a little bit of time spent in pain. Even though she had suggested it and wanted to learn the skill Katelynn still wasn't very enthused about sitting down in one spot for possibly hours, numerous times, in order to learn this and likely be subjected to needless, useless female gossip.

Not fun.

At all.

It was shortly after this that Strider entered the room. He took the seat on the other side of Arwen. During the meal Katelynn had moved from being surrounded by the hobbits to being on one side of Arwen and across from the twin brothers in order to have her necessary conversations with each. Now there was only an unknowingly unfortunate elleth between the woman and a man whose mere presence was angering her and putting her on edge. She didn't trust men. She didn't like them either. They were disgusting, selfish, lying traitors.

Simple.

He started talking to Arwen about something that Katelynn couldn't be bothered caring about and the woman's mood was gradually getting worse and worse with each breath that Strider took in her presence. Nobody could say that Gandalf wasn't observant as he moved to sit next to Katelynn in the hope that a conversation with her would distract her from plotting numerous ways to kill Strider and eventually executing the most painful and tortuous one she could concoct.

"Hello my dear,"

"It's the evening,"

"Good evening my dear,"

"Better,"

"You know that joke is getting a little old,"

"Nope,"

The wizard sighed deeply at this. He had hoped that having the hobbits around and spending time with the man on the brief remainder of the journey to Rivendell would have lessened her rage somewhat. That was not the case at all.

"Katelynn,"

"Yeah,"

"Would you prefer to sit with the hobbits instead?"  
"I'm not changing or moving for a filthy man,"

Another sigh and a couple of glances from some of the elves around the table. None of these things fazed the woman. She didn't just have a stubbornness streak it was currently a very generous and thick coating. She was not in a good mood. Her stubbornness also meant that if anyone was going to move it wasn't going to be her. He came so he can leave. Katelynn would have also preferred if Gandalf would stop mentioning the scum that was currently sitting so close to her; too close. She was trying to ignore him and this was a difficult task if those around you refused to allow that to happen. Whether Gandalf was trying to help or not didn't matter because he most certainly was _not_ helping the situation at all.

At least Elrond was a little better at this.

"Katelynn. I know I keep asking but how are your wounds doing?"

"Not too bad. My back feels fine but my leg still feels a little numb. And before you start! I can walk on it so I'm fine. It probably just needs another couple of days, after all it was my older wound of the two,"

"True. You need to at the very least promise me that I will be able to inspect them again before you leave,"

"Sure. So long as you can guarantee that I won't be pestered about it anymore,"  
"Agreed,"  
"Deal,"

The situation did diffuse slightly after this and it may have helped that the hobbits decided that they had eaten enough and wanted to join the others and engage in a conversation. It was all going well until one of the hobbits made another comment about her injuries that Strider was able to hear this time.

"I was wondering why you fainted so quickly. You said you got that back wound when escorting Arwen and Frodo to the borders of Rivendell. It became 'infected' rather quickly. Frodo lasted a lot longer,"  
this was clearly aimed at Katelynn and she rested her head in one of her hands to massage her temple as she contemplated the idea of leaving the room or killing the insolent man. Her stubbornness and pride refused to allow her to leave the room because of him but she had also promised that she wouldn't kill him, or try to, Gandalf and Elrond had made that part very clear. She could give him the explanation he wanted and wait around to watch his face as he realise the huge mistake he had made in underestimating her in such a degrading and insulting manner. But at the same time she didn't want to address him directly if she could help it. She still wanted to believe that his existence was just a bad joke and would go away if she ignored it long enough. Probably not but there was still such thing as hope. Luckily Pip came to the rescue.

"Is that strange? Are you alright? What happened? Are you alright?"

"I'm fine Pip,"

She didn't really have a choice now but since it was one of the hobbits asking now she was more than willing to give a bit of an explanation. One of the few circumstances where the questions of the chatty hobbit was a good thing.

"The scratch on my back wasn't my only injury received by the Nazgul. I was struck in the leg by one of their blades back in Bree,"

"You were in Bree! When?!"

"One question at a time Pip. Anyway. From what I was able to find out I came to Bree shortly after you left but I encountered a few of the Nazgul that were still lingering around the place. Between my wound and being preoccupied with stopping or at least slowing down the Nazgul I was slowed down in my pursuit of you lot,"

With this last part she affectionately rubbed the top of Pippin's head where his soft and curly hair rested.

"The wound I got on my back didn't help with the 'illness' or 'infection' or whatever you want to call it but I had gotten my other wound a week or two beforehand. If anything I think I withstood the pain and unconsciousness quite well,"

"You were in pain?"

This time it was Merry and he too received a head rub from the woman at his question.

"Not anymore. I promise my wounds no longer give me any pain. My leg is still a little numb but I can walk on it so you know it can't be all that bad. Okay?"  
"Oh alright,"

"If you say so,"

Merry and Pippin knew that they didn't have any other choice but to agree with Katelynn and as she pulled them into a hug she grabbed hold of Sam, who had been standing a little on the sidelines during the whole discussion, to draw him into the embrace as well. Hobbits really did always make things better.

"No more worrying. Promise,"

"We promise,"

"Yeah,"

"Alright,"

It was a bit of a tender moment for a little while.

"Hey Katelynn, when did you get soft,"

"Oh shush,"

Merry didn't ask it as a question because he knew that there wasn't an answer. The woman wasn't soft. Far from it. She only ever let her guard loosen when she was around the hobbits but they all knew that it could be reinforced in an instant and that she was extremely dangerous when in this state. They had seen little bits and pieces of her ferocity but she tended to not want to scare the Halflings but most of their occasional fear and continuous caution came from stories they had heard. All of them from Gandalf. This made them that tiny bit more frightening but they were always assured that she never attacked without being first provoked and that even then she could still be understanding, bit this also depended on who offended her and the hobbits found themselves a little safe in this respect.

Once the moment was officially over and Katelynn had released the hobbits from her arms the attention was brought back to the rest of the room. Although most of it did go to the embarrassed ranger. The woman's initial and continued rudeness towards him had caused a spark of vengeance to ignite within him and his attempt to insult and belittle the accused woman had backfired. Instead he had been made to look the ill-mannered fool for his very wrong and hurtful assumption.

It wasn't all bad though. Katelynn's silly moment with the hobbits had helped to lift the mood a little retorts. Basically for the first time ever both Gandalf and Elrond were thankful of her extreme loathing of mankind as it helped to prevent any further incident for the rest of the meal and indeed the night.

The rest of the night thankfully did pass without any more accidents as shortly after this particular one the woman at the centre of the trouble decided to retire for the rest of the evening. Of course this led to the hobbits worrying that she was still injured and covering it up and for once Katelynn found that she really didn't have the strength to argue against these statements. She had to tactfully explain to the three Halflings that it was a case of she would feel even better the more rest she allowed her body to have and even though she was perfectly fine now she still had the room to feel even better. It took a while but, with a little tactful assistance from the elf lord, the woman was able to convince Merry, Pippin and Sam that her resting was a rare act of maturity and responsibility that was almost never seen from the reclusive female. At this realisation they quickly became silent, not wanting to stop this personal accomplishment for Katelynn. She was known for being a fighter and caring little about her own health and safety. If she was willing to rest then nobody should be objecting to it or trying to prevent her.

What they didn't know was that before making her way to her temporary sleeping chambers Katelynn was first going to pay a visit to the still unconscious hobbit.

In all reality the woman had no intentions of resting that night and was perfectly content to stay by Frodo's side until he awoke. If Elrond was correct in his predictions then she wouldn't have to wait more than a day for this to occur. Something that was nowhere near a challenge for her. In the wilderness she was often alone, except for the few instances that she ran into the wizard and decided to travel with him for a short time and more often than not visit the Shire, which meant that during the night she was often vulnerable if she decided to go into a deep sleep. Katelynn usually spent her days working on little to no sleep depending on where in particular she was traveling at the time, there were just some places that you couldn't afford to even briefly rest in let alone sleep.

"Whose there?!"

Katelynn perceived Rivendell as a safe place and so was not afraid to rest her eyes for a few moments, knowing that if anything happened she would still be aware of it. Apparently she had overestimated her abilities as she hadn't woken until the intruder now in the room spoke.

"You will wake Frodo up if you continue to yell. I do desperately want him to wake but not at the cost of his health,"

"Katelynn?"

Said woman had felt no need to ask of the identity of the new, and unwanted, addition to the room. His voice had given that away as well as the instinctive reach towards his weapon. Elves did not carry swords within their walls, they had no need.

"You said you were retiring to your quarters,"

There was slight accusation in the man's voice. There was no reason to trust or believe someone who decided to lie.

"I got distracted,"

She hadn't lied and she still had not moved from her seat by Frodo's side as she hadn't even jumped at the surprise entrance of another person. She was far too skilled for that; and far too cautious. One false move could create a misunderstanding and start a fight and with this ill-mannered man it was even more likely to be so, if he had seen a sudden movement caused by her shock he would have likely attacked instead of waiting for an answer to his question.

The intruder hadn't moved either, besides to drop his hand away from where the hilt of his sword would have resided if it was in his possession. Within the walls of Imladris he too didn't require a weapon.

There was pressing silence for a while longer and, as expected, it wasn't the woman who first broke the peace.

"What distracted you? Lord Elrond insists that he will not wake until tomorrow at the earliest. Do you not trust him?"

There was further accusation in his tone and if it wasn't for this then she may have gone back to ignoring him.

"I trust Elrond. I merely wanted to stay by his side. Have you questioned Sam and Gandalf about their same desire? For the record, I also don't appreciate your other accusation,"

"I have accused you of nothing!"

His raised voice earnt a stern glare from Katelynn, by this point his eyes would have adjusted enough to the dim room to be able to see it. His almost unnoticeable recoil confirmed this and the quite tone of his next words made it clear that he either had a respect or fear of the woman. She would have guessed and preferred the latter.

"If you are speaking about what happened at dinner…I apologise,"

He was an imbecile by her standards.

"I never lied. I said that I was leaving to rest. I made no mention that I would be taking that rest in my given quarters,"

"I never accused you of lying,"

"You implied it,"

"Then I apologise,"

"Yet you don't refute the fact that you were indeed at the very least thinking it,"

"Is there no pleasing you?"

"Not from the likes of you,"

Katelynn had been able to keep her voice at the same volume throughout the whole conversation, no matter how much the man infuriated her, while Strider did not succeeded in this. His voice during the final question had been unnecessarily loud but his anger could easily be attributed to that. The problem, besides the possibility of disturbing the resting hobbit, was that it drew the attention of some elves in the hallway. They poked their heads into the room and quickly asked if everything was alright. Katelynn refused to give a response so after a pause Strider had to reassure them that everything was indeed fine, even if he was a little uncertain about this himself. The man promptly left after this, never stating his reason for coming to the room in the first place. It didn't matter to Katelynn. She was simply happy to once again be surrounded by peace, and quiet.

Sam came in after a while and, unlike Strider, didn't question the woman's presence. Instead he placed himself on another chair and almost instantly fell asleep. Gandalf also poked his head into the room at one point but after observing Katelynn's presence must have proceeded on to another place for the night.

In this fashion the first rays of the morning came. Gandalf returned and silently Katelynn swapped positions with him. After leaving her seat she made her way onto the balcony adjacent to the room to enjoy the morning view.

She could never get over how beautiful the elven city was. Especially when the sun struck the buildings. Both sunrise and sunset were gorgeous in their own ways. At sunset everything was bathed in new colours of red, orange and yellow but the morning sun had a different effect. It woke everything up. The light was gentle and instead of changing the colours of the landscape it magnified the existing ones. The grass became greener while the trees stood up straighter. The flowers greeted the day in their own lazy and pretty way while the stone of Rivendell's buildings became pure white. It was at this time of the day that all of the colours of the world were magnified to their greatest potential. During the day they would dim somewhat but at this time they were contrasted completely against the sleeping shades of night.

It was peaceful.

Beautiful.

If only Frodo was awake to see this. With that thought Katelynn gently shook awake the other hobbit and watched his reaction at seeing the beauty of sunrise.


End file.
